Citi received mixed signals from the Fed on 'stress test': WSJ

A Citibank sign on a bank branch in midtown Manhattan, New York, November 17, 2010.

Reuters/Mike Segar

(Reuters) - The Federal Reserve indicated to Citigroup Inc that the bank would get more time to fix certain "stress test" planning problems before rejecting its capital plan last month, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing people close to the company.

The Fed had agreed to give Citigroup a 2015 deadline to address a series of shortcomings identified by the regulator in the wake of the 2013 test, the report said. (r.reuters.com/tyz58v)

Executives at Citigroup received mixed messages from the Fed and were taken aback after the bank failed to get the nod on its capital plan in March, the Journal reported.

Citigroup and the Fed were not available for comment immediately outside regular U.S. working hours.

The Federal Reserve last month rejected Citigroup's plans to buy back $6.4 billion of shares and boost dividends, saying the bank is not sufficiently prepared to handle a potential financial crisis.

Citi was one of the five banks whose payout plans were rejected by the Fed.